Police said they arrived Sept. 8 to find Matthew Degner lying outside the feces-filled brick bungalow in Berwyn that lacked working plumbing. He later died of pneumonia.

Authorities discovered that Matthew and his four siblings, then ranging from 12 to 18, were home schooled and lived with nearly 200 animals, many diseased and malnourished, in a home infested with spiders and rats.

Price, 50, is free on $10,000 bail after being charged with criminal neglect of a disabled child, child endangerment and animal hoarding.

The Tribune obtained a copy of the 3-minute 911 call Price placed after finding Matthew had stopped breathing while taking a nap in the home on the 2800 block of Lombard Avenue.

On the tape, Price described Matthew’s flu-like symptoms to the 911 dispatcher.

“He’s got stuff coming out of his nose …” Price said.

She continued: “He’s dead. He’s dead. He’s dead. He’s dead. My God.”

Also on the tape, as a barking dog drowns out the other children’s voices, Price is repeatedly heard telling them, “Come on. They’re coming. Let’s go. Hurry up.”

Price also instructs the dispatcher to tell rescuers to meet her at the rear door. Prosecutors have said Matthew was carried outside, where rescuers found him lying unconscious and wearing only a large T-shirt.

In an earlier Tribune interview, the single mother maintained she did the best she could for her children while paralyzed by poverty and that conditions in the home only recently spiraled out of control.

Her attorney, Steven Greenberg, added: “I think the whole thing is a tragedy and the tape shows nothing more than a loving, caring mother.”

State child welfare officials put Price’s other children in protective custody. The oldest boy, who at 18 is considered an adult, moved in with his grandfather after the tragedy.